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1 Self-assessment Report of the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Amsterdam for the 2008 Research Assessment ABS-RI AMSTERDAM BUSINESS SCHOOL RESEARCH INSTITUTE RESAM RESEARCH INSTITUTE ECONOMICS & ECONOMETRICS AMSTERDAM

7 Introduction on Faculty of Economics and Business The Faculty of Economics and Business has two research institutes: one in business and one in economics and econometrics. This is in line with the situation in other faculties within the University of Amsterdam where separate research institutes exist to reflect different research areas and traditions. At the time of the previous research assessment, plans had already been made to set up a distinct research institute for business (as part of the creation of the Amsterdam Business School) in order to bring this area more towards the level where economics and econometrics already was. Targeted attention with specific knowledge of the respective business subfields was and is seen as necessary for this purpose. Increasing and furthering high-quality research in both business and economics/econometrics in a setting of healthy competition, mutual understanding and good cooperation where possible has been our approach. Although certainly more can be done in our quest for excellence, we think steps forward have been made in the period under assessment, thanks to the dedicated attention that only separate institutes can guarantee. In the field of business, concerted efforts to strengthen areas other than finance, that already was at a high level, have been made, and in economics and econometrics, steps have been taken to improve programmes for which this was indicated while maintaining momentum in the programmes that had scored well in the previous period. This focused attention on the different disciplines has helped us to substantially increase research output in the business school in just a few years, whilst improvements in economics and econometrics have been sustained. The current report outlines developments and results for both institutes and their programmes put forward for assessment. On a practical level, both institutes (and the schools of which they are part, i.e. the Amsterdam Business School and the Amsterdam School of Economics) have worked together very well. In the assessment period, they shared the support office (one staff member) and thus reaped synergies there. Coordination takes place where appropriate. For example, the research institute in economics and econometrics (RESAM) has main responsibility for the policies and practicalities related to the MPhil/Ph.D. programme in the Tinbergen Institute, and which also covers finance that is part of the research institute in business (ABS-RI). Policy changes with major implications are discussed between the two, and ABS-RI follows the policy adopted by RESAM. Similarly, while both institutes have their own journal lists as a necessary reflection of their main focus and a clear statement of concomitant profiles and most-desired outlets, rankings are mutually recognised as a principle. Personnel policy also follows the same tenets in terms of for example tenure track and promotion principles, as also agreed in a joint committee that approves promotions and associate and full professor appointments, but differences within the disciplines covered by both institutes and their peculiarities in terms of publication requirements and labour market conditions are being taken into account (Details can be found in A4 of both institutes reports; although policies are largely similar, we have chosen to include them in both cases as this makes each report into a comprehensive whole with all relevant information for the institute together). A final example is that both institutes cooperated in creating the Amsterdam Centre for Entrepreneurship that covers both, and there are various areas in which researchers across the areas work together, sometimes also in submitting research 9

8 grant proposals if this is deemed to have higher chances of success. As mentioned in the report, we stimulate researchers to cooperate both within and outside the university, but do not direct that, only facilitate where appropriate and feasible. Hence, while targeted and separate attention for business on the one hand and economics and econometrics on the other continues to be needed as a reflection of research styles and traditions of the respective fields in which researchers can prosper, and there may be different interests when it comes to a division of scarce resources, this is accompanied by fruitful cooperation and reaping of synergies at the operational side. This serves the overall objective of fostering excellent and relevant research. Where we exactly are in this process is obviously up to the committee to assess. 10

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11 RESAM RESEARCH INSTITUTE ECONOMICS & ECONOMETRICS AMSTERDAM AMSTERDAM SCHOOL OF ECONOMIC FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS UNIVERSITY OF AMSTERDAM

12 A. Documentation regarding the level of the institute

13 RESAM RESAM - RESEARCH INSTITUTE IN ECONOMICS & ECONOMETRICS Name of the institute: RESAM Research Institute in Economics & Econometrics Amsterdam Date of establishment: January 1, 1998 Institutional affiliations and formal responsibilities: RESAM is the research institute of the Amsterdam School of Economics (ASE), which in turn is part of the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Amsterdam. RESAM s formal responsibility is to stimulate excellent research in the field of economics, and to spent ASE s research funds are spent efficiently. Research area: Economics, econometrics, actuarial science and operations research RESAM cooperates formally in the Tinbergen Institute (TI), this is the joint research school of the economics departments of Erasmus University, the Free University Amsterdam and the University of Amsterdam. A.1 Mission statement RESAM aims for research results that significantly improve our understanding of the operation of economic systems, the behaviour of agents in the economy and the effects of economic policies. RESAM facilitates and promotes research by faculty members of the Amsterdam School of Economics to foster the academic ideal of intertwined university research and teaching. A.2 Leadership According to the law steering the management of universities in the Netherlands, the dean has the final authority on all research-related (and other) matters. The dean can formally or informally delegate whatever s/he wishes. So far delegation of research responsibilities within ASE have only been informal. There does not exist a document clearly defining the duties, authority and responsibilities of the director of RESAM. The director of RESAM is in the management team of ASE; also for this MT duties, authority and responsibilities have not been clearly defined. RESAM currently covers nine research programs (+SEO), each of which is directed by a program leader. These programs are regarded as the natural units of organization of the research conducted in RESAM. Research agenda s are primarily defined at the level of research groups, with an important role for the program leaders and other senior researchers. RESAM s main steering mechanism is its system of allocating research time. Based on publications in journals (or books) during the previous three years researchers can earn up to 0.5 FTE of research time. The system differentiates by quality of journals and number of co-authors. People who earn 100 so-called RESAM points (the equivalent of two single authored publications in B-journals in three years) receive the 0.5 FTE. People with less than 100 points can still earn 0.25 or FTE research time. Faculty-members who are admitted as fellow of TI are automatically awarded the maximum research time of 0.5 FTE. 143

14 RESAM Decisions regarding the size of the institute s budget and the allocation of that budget are made in the management teams of Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB) and of the Amsterdam School of Economics. Formally the dean of the FEB takes the final decisions. With the respect of the internal operation of the research institute (within RESAM s office) the management style of the director is informal and open. In relation to the program leaders and other faculty-members, the management style is best characterized as laissez-faire. Program leaders and other faculty members manage the research on their groups. Communication is horizontal. It is believed that this style is the most suitable one in an academic environment with intrinsically motivated and highly creative professionals. Besides the incentive to earn future research time, an important mean of motivation is the school s promotion policy as embedded in its personnel policy. In recent years the school changed from a system with fixed numbers of positions for full and associate professors to a system of career development. In the latter system a faculty member who meets certain standards in research (and teaching) can be promoted to a higher rank. This gives a strong incentive to publish in top-ranked journals as such publications have a heavy weight in promotion decisions. A.3 Strategy and policy At the moment of the previous research assessment RESAM was the umbrella institute for all research in the FEB. Nowadays it no longer covers the fields related to business studies (which include finance). It was believed that research and publication traditions in economics and business are too different to include them in the same institute. The divide between the research institutes in economics and business studies is mirrored by the division of the FEB into two separate schools: the Amsterdam School of Economics and the Amsterdam Business School, which both have a vice-dean in charge of daily operations in their respective schools. Currently RESAM covers nine relatively homogenous research groups that (with one exception) share a common research culture, with a strong emphasis on and use of quantitative research tools. Some programs represent research areas with a long-standing tradition in economics such as the groups in econometrics, macroeconomics, industrial organization and labour economics. Others represent relatively new fields such as experimental and behavioural economics and the application of nonlinear dynamics to economics. These latter programs are the continuations of successful projects sponsored by the Dutch Science Organization (NWO). The fields of history and methodology of economic thought and actuarial sciences resemble two typical ingredients of the Amsterdam School of Economics. Finally RESAM covers the field of Operations Research due to that field s close link in teaching with other quantitatively oriented fields. There are no plans to change the current coverage of research areas. But obviously new areas are constantly explored and the institute s organization is sufficiently flexible to accommodate this, as shown by the start of the separate program in Industrial Economics, Competition and Antitrust in Potentially promising new areas include evolutionary game theory, network theory and neuronomics. As with successful innovations in the research program in the past (CREED, CENDEF, 144

15 RESAM SCHOLAR), these new areas should first secure a period of research funding from temporary funding agencies (NWO, EU). During that period, the new programs can prove to be important contributors to RESAM s research program. ASE/RESAM s policy to embed successful innovative research programs that have been funded by NWO as a regular research program funded by RESAM, contrasts with policies pursued elsewhere, where successful innovative programs have a hard time entering the regular system. In response to the previous research assessment there has been a gradual increase in the requirements to earn research time. In the past, faculty members could also earn research time with publications in so-called C-ranked journals (including some Dutch language journals). This is not possible anymore. This should strengthen faculty members awareness of the importance to conduct research that can potentially be published in high ranked international journals. In response to the previous research assessment the program in comparative population and gender studies ended as a separate program, and became part of the human capital program. With the recent retirement of the full professor in this field, the program is now completely terminated. ASE (together with the Finance group of ABS) participates as one of the three partners in the TI. The other partners are the economics departments of the Free University Amsterdam and the Erasmus University Rotterdam. TI plays an important role as graduate school in the training and supervision of Mphil and PhD students (see A6). In addition the TI is a place where many joint research activities take place, such as the organization of seminars, conferences and hosting visitors from abroad. In Amsterdam, TI is located in the same building complex as the Amsterdam School of Economics, making it particularly convenient for faculty members to go there. (Until 2002 TI was located along one of the canals at equal distance from the University of Amsterdam and the Free University Amsterdam.) As a research school, TI also played an important role in setting higher standards for research. Qualifying as a fellow of TI is based on publications in international journals and (possibly) citation scores. TI-fellows automatically earn the maximum research time of 0.5 FTE. It is recent policy that new faculty-members only get tenure when they qualify as (junior) fellow of TI (or another recognized research school). In recent years RESAM s director has proposed that only fellows of TI (or another recognized research school) can obtain research time, but this proposal was not supported by a majority of the program leaders. Also the proposal to differentiate research time such that excellent researchers can get up to 0.7 FTE research time (at the cost of awarding less research time to people who earn less than 0.5 FTE) was not supported by a majority of the program leaders. A.4 Researchers and other personnel As stated in the introduction, personnel policy of the two schools of the FEB are very similar. As a consequence, the following text in almost identical to the corresponding section in the part of the ABS. Differences reflect differences between the disciplines covered by the two schools in terms of publication requirements and labour market conditions. 145

16 RESAM The aims of the ASE s personnel policy for academic staff are: a) to assist in the achievement of the aims of the ASE, and b) to provide an attractive working environment for the staff. The first objective requires appropriate policies in the fields of recruitment, tenure, promotion and (early) retirement. The second objective requires that the ASE provides attractive employment (salary, expenses, leave, computers, office space, secretariat, promotion criteria, good management) and academic (PhD students, seminars, colleagues) conditions. A highly qualified and well-motivated staff is the main asset of a teaching and research institution and essential to its success. Assistant professors (UD s) are recruited by open competition. Vacancies are advertised in the national press, and full details placed on the UvA website (in both Dutch & English), and usually advertised internationally as well. Members of appointments committees are expected to use their networks to draw the attention of suitable candidates, either national or international, to the vacancy. A public seminar will usually form part of the appointment process. Requirements: meeting formal criteria adopted by all Dutch universities. Having a PhD in the relevant field, positive letters of reference and if possible some teaching experience. Publications in serious journals (at least at B level) are desirable as is an ambition to contribute to international academic discussion by means of articles in international journals. Initial appointment is normally for four years, with the possibility of a subsequent permanent position subject to favourable performance ( tenure track ). In some cases the initial appointment may be for two years, with the possibility of a two-year extension if certain conditions are met, e.g. knowledge of Dutch. Decision about tenure is taken after four years. Requirements for tenure are favourable teaching evaluations, and (junior) fellowship of the Tinbergen Institute (or of another recognized research institute) or demonstrated potential to become so in a reasonable time. Associate professors (UHDs) are recruited by open competition or internal promotion. General policies as listed under UDs also apply here. Requirements: meeting official criteria, specifically teaching experience and favourable teaching evaluations; design of new courses; substantial number of publications including a number in top journals; directing research of others (e.g. Ph.D. students); attracting external funding; international contacts and experience; management experience (e.g. as director of a course committee or of a teaching programme); and research impact (e.g. citations). All proposals for appointment at UHD level (which require 3 letters of reference from international referees) to go to an FEB committee which evaluates the proposal against these criteria. Full professors (HGL) are recruited by open competition (except in cases of internal promotion) according to the guidelines in UvA publication Recruitment and Selection of Professors. All vacancies are to be advertised nationally and internationally. Requirements: official criteria, specifically wide teaching experience and demonstrated competence both in teaching and in designing courses; wide international contacts and experience; international reputation (e.g. as shown by citations); impressive publication list; a good record in Ph.D. student supervision; experience in fund-raising; expectation that she/he can provide academic leadership. 146

17 RESAM All proposals for appointment as HGL, including at least 3 letters of reference from international referees, go to a FEB committee (currently the Vaste Commissie Benoemingen (VCB)) which checks them against the criteria. Initial appointments as HGL are normally for 5 years, with the possibility of renewal till retirement age. The purpose of this is to prevent the ASE being saddled with the consequences of unsuitable appointments for decades. Initial appointments on a permanent basis are possible where the person concerned already has a permanent appointment at the ASE (e.g. as Associate professor) or is already a HGL elsewhere or where such an offer is necessary for labour market reasons. PhD students are the future of the academic world. The ASE is keen to have a good number of them, give them a good training, and produce a regular stream of fresh PhDs. (See also A7: Research school activities.) Postdocs. Good fresh Ph.D.s from the ABS or elsewhere may be offered postdoc positions. These are temporary research positions for a maximum of 4 years. Postdocs will also be required to do some teaching, normally at least 0.2. In some cases, at the end of the postdoc period, the postdoc may be offered a UD or even UHD position, if the person meets the criteria for those posts (see above). Up till now, postdoc positions have been mainly externally financed (Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research, NWO). From 2008 onwards the ASE expects to have also some internally financed postdoc positions. Evaluation Each member of staff should have an annual assessment (jaargesprek) with the section head. This provides an opportunity for the person concerned to express their own views, and for the employer to explain the ASE s evaluation of the person s work and of their career prospects in the ASE. Except in the case of full time lecturers (docenten) and researchers (onderzoekers), the ASE strives for appointments (teaching and research). Both teaching and research are required to be of a high level. Members of staff are expected to respond appropriately to poor student evaluations. Staff who fail to achieve good student evaluations of their courses, especially if this happens a number of times in a row, are required to participate in a course on teaching methods or presentational skills. Research time is allocated according to performance norms which are communicated to all members of staff. Staff who fail to meet the norm for 50% research time will receive less and will automatically receive an increased teaching task. Promotions The ASE operates on the career principle. This means that promotions are made on the basis of an individual s achievements, independent of whether or not there is a vacancy (although obviously vacancies in key fields have to filled on retirement or resignation). Criteria for promotion are known to members of staff. There must be some individualisation of the criteria since members of the ASE work in very different fields and have varying strengths. Employment conditions At the present time there are some possibilities to improve the income of staff and reimburse expenses (arbeidsmarkttoelage, functioneringstoelage, a one-off gratificatie, extra periodieken, onkosten) or improve their personal situation (crèche, housing) where this is necessary to retain or motivate them. These possibilities should be used as appropriate. Flexibility/individualisation. In applying the above, we pay attention to special 147

18 RESAM circumstances affecting specific individuals and/or particular subject areas. Hence the policy is a set of guidelines, to be interpreted flexibly in particular cases, and not rigid and inflexible. Table 33 Research staff at institutional level RESAM Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Supporting staff Fte Total staff Sum Table 34 Research staff at institutional level excluding SEO RESAM Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Supporting staff Fte Total staff Sum Table 35 Research staff at programme level UvA-Econometrics Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Operations Research Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Equilibrium, Expectations, Dynamics Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Actuarial Science Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum The Transformation of Europe Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Tables 34 and 35 shows for the years the number of research staff in various categories: tenured staff, non-tenured staff and PhD students, all measured in FTE s (and not in persons). The size of tenured staff is around 25 FTE, and that of non-tenured around 30 FTE. The number of PhD students (measured in FTE) is around 17. The total number of PhD students (measured) in persons in 2007 was 32 (this also includes students funded from external sources). The drop in the number of PhD students in the last years is a consequence of a vacancy stop some years ago. Table 36 gives the breakdown of research staff by programs. The sizes of most groups are fairly constant over time. Most of the year-to-year changes are attributable to vacancies not immediately filled when people leave. An exception is the program of Actuarial Sciences, which expanded in 2007 due to a large research 148

19 RESAM grant. The reduction in size of the Human Capital program is artificial. Until 2003 the IO-group was part of this program. Thereafter it started as an independent program. Table 35 (continued) Human Capital Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum History and Methodology of Economics Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Experimental and Political Economics Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum Industrial Economics, Competition & Antitrust Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte 0.45 PhD students Fte 0.45 Total research staff Sum SEO Tenured staff Fte Non-tenured staff Fte PhD students Fte Total research staff Sum A.5 Resources, funding and facilities Currently RESAM s annual budget amounts to 4.5 million Euros, two thirds of that being spent on academic staff. RESAM is only in charge of the direct funding. It encourages faculty members to obtain research funds (and contracts), but has so far chosen to have no say in the allocation of such funds. That is to the discretion of the people acquiring these funds. 1.9 million is spent on research time of faculty members of ASE. This amount is the immediate result of applying RESAM s system of awarding research time to the research output of faculty members of ASE. In a given year, there is not much RESAM can do to manipulate this. The deans of ASE and FEB decide who are on ASE s payroll (and thus the amount of research output). Changing the system to award research time can only be done when announced some years (given the time it takes to publish) in advance. Another 1 million is assigned to untenured people (including salaries for PhD students). Half of other expenditures are spent in the form of matching outside funding. For most of its funding schemes, the Dutch Science Organization (NWO) requires that the university that employs the recipient, bears part of the costs. This requirement (which has been terminated this year) absorbed a large substantial share of RESAM s budget over the past years. Another large portion of other expenditures is related to the Tinbergen Institute in the form of a lump sum payment to TI, scholarships and teaching in the Mphil program. 0.2 million Euros is directly assigned to the RESAM s research programs, partly on 149

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